Key points:
- Korean American United Methodist pastors gathered Feb. 9-12 for the 2026 Growing Church Conference under the theme “How Do We Grow the Church?”
- Launched in 2001 as a grass roots movement within the Western Jurisdiction, the gathering has evolved from a jurisdictional initiative into a nationwide event, now welcoming pastors serving cross-racial and cross-cultural appointments.
- In his keynote address, the Rev. Ken Suhr identified three core elements of a healthy, growing church: healthy relationships, clear purpose and intentional disciple-making.
How does the church grow?
That question framed the 2026 Growing Church Conference, held Feb. 9-12 at First United Methodist Church of San Diego. Under the theme “How Do We Grow the Church?” (Acts 2:47), Korean American United Methodist pastors gathered to reflect not only on strategy, but also on the deeper spiritual foundations of congregational vitality.
Launched in 2001 as a grassroots movement within the Western Jurisdiction, the Growing Church Conference was built on a simple premise of learning together and teaching one another. Regardless of church size, participants come as both presenters and learners. Over the years, the gathering has evolved from a jurisdictional initiative into a nationwide event, now welcoming pastors serving cross-racial and cross-cultural appointments.
“This year, we wanted to question what we mean by ‘growth,’” said the Rev. Gyu Hyun Kim, the conference executive coordinator and pastor of Berkeley Korean United Methodist Church in Orinda, California. “Are we talking about numbers alone? Or are we talking about becoming a community that reflects the life of Christ?”
The Rev. Ki-Yong Lee, who serves as conference Korean American resource coordinator and is a retired pastor of the Desert Southwest Conference, has been involved with the Growing Church Conference since its early years.
Lee noted that it remains one of the few spaces where Korean American pastors can speak openly about both discouragement and resilience. He reminded participants that the conference began in response to practical needs among small churches, describing it as a place where small churches speak in their own voice.
“Big conferences often inspired us, but when we returned to our local congregations, we struggled to apply what we had heard,” he said. “So we said, ‘Let’s gather ourselves. Let’s share what is actually happening in our ministries — the successes and the failures. Why did this work? Why didn’t that work? What can we learn from one another?’”
The opening worship service featured the Rev. Changmin Lee of Zion Korean United Methodist Church in Carson, California, preaching on 2 Corinthians 6:9: “as unknown and yet well known, as dying and behold — we are alive.”
He described the church not as a mere organization but as a living organism.
“Because it is alive, we sometimes say the church is dying,” he said. “But if we are honest about that reality, we may also discover hope for renewal.”
Citing research by church consultant Thom Rainer on declining congregations, Lee urged pastors not to ignore signs of spiritual fatigue. At the same time, he pointed to prayer as the first mark of renewal.
“If we never name the death, we continue to decline without noticing,” he said. “But when we bring it before God, resurrection becomes possible.
“I hope each of you will hear God say, ‘It’s OK. I am with you.’”
The Rev. Ken Suhr, director of leadership and congregational vitality for the California-Pacific Conference, delivered the keynote address, “The DNA of a Growing Church.”
He began by acknowledging pastoral discouragement, recalling the prayer from Mark 9:24: “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.”
Suhr identified three core elements of a healthy, growing church: healthy relationships, clear purpose and intentional disciple-making.
He argued that the crisis facing many congregations is not a lack of strategy, but a weakening of discipleship pathways.
Referencing the framework “Practicing the Way” — being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus and doing what Jesus did — Suhr reminded pastors that worship is like a huddle in sports.
“We gather, we are encouraged and then we go back onto the field,” he said. “If we huddle well but never play, something is wrong.”
On the second morning, the Rev. Inhwa Son of Black River Falls United Methodist Church in Wisconsin preached from John 17:20–23, focusing on Jesus’ prayer for unity.
“In the midst of statistics, expectations and burnout, I keep asking: ‘Who am I?’ Before we are pastors, we are disciples,” Son said.
Quoting Henri Nouwen, Son described spiritual discipline as “creating space for God to work.” In solitude and prayer, pastors are reminded of God’s affirmation: “You are my beloved.
The Rev. Hyunsup Jung of Oakland Korean United Methodist Church in Oakland, California, followed with a lecture titled “Leadership Mindset and Church Growth.” Rather than offering new techniques, Jung emphasized daily faithfulness.
Regular prayer, steady leadership and attentive presence, he said, form the quiet backbone of congregational health.
“Crises do not appear suddenly,” he said, comparing them to sinkholes formed by long-term erosion. “Sometimes the most skilled pastor is not the one who handles crises well, but the one who prevents them through consistent and faithful spiritual habits.”
In an afternoon session, the Rev. Hongyun Won, who serves LA Gospel United Methodist Mission in Los Angeles, addressed “Building a Healthy Church System.”
“The gospel does not change,” Won said, “but the container must be agile.”
He urged pastors to rethink attractional models.
“In a culture that values meaning over size, congregations must articulate not only what they believe, but how their life together shapes disciples,” he said.
Referencing Mark 6, Han said, “Jesus did not ask the disciples for a report. He said, ‘Come away and rest.’”
In an era of increasing personalization, Won encouraged relational ministry marked by attentiveness and memory.
“Let technology do what it can do,” he said. “And let us invest our time in people.”
The Rev. Yohan Han, pastor of Westminster United Methodist Church and Congregational Resource Minister for the Colorado Front Range District of the Mountain Sky Conference, explored ministry in times of crisis, suggesting that joy itself can become a spiritual practice.
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Rest, he emphasized, is not geographical but internal. Changing location without changing pace does not produce renewal. Healthy hobbies and personal rhythms can sustain long-term ministry.
On the third morning, the Rev. Kisung Nam of Santa Maria Bethel Korean United Methodist Church preached from John 21:9–14, the story of the risen Christ preparing breakfast for weary disciples.
“Ministry does not move forward by my effort alone,” Nam said. “The Lord of the church is already at work.”
Reflecting on nearly two decades of pastoral ministry, Nam acknowledged that diligence and prayer do not guarantee visible success. Yet the invitation of Christ remains: “Come and have breakfast.”
For Nam, those words mean, “Begin again. I have not given up on you.”
Among the presenters, the Rev. J. Martin Lee, executive director of connectional ministries for the Cal-Nevada Conference, offered a framework connecting personal spirituality with congregational health.
Lee said that a pastor’s true success does not rest on church growth or outward achievements, but on “the peace in one’s heart.” Reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic, church conflicts, disaffiliation issues and personal hardships, he shared that what sustained him was not the circumstances themselves, but the peace given by God. He concluded that “a ministry that preserves peace is ultimately the most beautiful ministry.”
He also urged pastors to guard against narcissism and to live as channels of God’s grace, emphasizing that ministry is not about programs or systems, but about raising up people. God, he said, uses people more than methods and, at its core, ministry is about saving one soul at a time.
Growth, participants shared and discussed during the conference, is not merely numerical expansion. It is the recovery of purpose, the cultivation of healthy relationships and the rebuilding of intentional pathways for discipleship.
The question, “How Do We Grow the Church?” remains open. But over four days in San Diego, through presentations and discussion, pastors were reminded that the first answer may not be a strategy, but a relationship — with Christ and with one another.
And perhaps the simplest starting point is still the Risen Lord’s invitation:
“Come and have breakfast.”
Kim is director of Korean and Asian news at United Methodist Communications. Contact him at 615-742-5470 or newsdesk@umnews.org. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free UM News Digest.
